May The Odds Be Ever In Your Favour
by TheMockingJay69
Summary: My name is Katniss Everdeen and I am in love with a boy who I have to kill, or be killed by. It's a hard choice to make when you're pregnant with his child...
1. AUTHORS NOTE

A/N:

Hello everyone, I am just posting to let you all know about my Polyvore account where I shall be posting chapter outfits as my story progresses. The link is in my profile, so anyone who is interested, the link to the collection is there. However, I will warn you that there may be some spoiler sets for future chapters that I have added. Anyways, I hope you all enjoy this story and I will try to update as regularly as I can. There will be prolonged periods of absence, but due to the nature of them, I cannot disclose my reasons. But, like I said before, I hope you all enjoy this story and stay with it till the end.


	2. Chapter 1 - Intro

There was a clatter in the bakery and I heard the woman screaming again and the sound of a blow, and I vaguely wondered what was going on. Feet sloshed towards me through the mud and I thought, _It's her. She's coming to drive me away with a stick_. But it wasn't her. It was the boy. In his arms, he carried two large loaves of bread that must have fallen into the fire because the crusts were scorched black.

His mother was yelling, "Feed it to the pig, you stupid creature! Why not? No one decent will buy burned bread!"

He began to tear off chunks from the burned parts and toss them into the trough, and the front bakery bell rung and the mother disappeared to help a customer.

The boy never even glanced my way, but I was watching him. Because of the bread, because of the red weal that stood out on his cheekbone. What had she hit him with? My parents never hit us. I couldn't even imagine it. The boy took one look back at the bakery as if checking that the coast was clear, then, his attention back on the pig, he threw a loaf of bread in my direction. The second quickly followed, and he sloshed back to the bakery, closing the kitchen door tightly behind him.

I stared at the loaves in disbelief. They were fine, perfect really, except for the burned areas. Did he mean for me to have them? He must have. Because there they were at my feet. Before anyone could witness what had happened I shoved the loaves up under my shirt, wrapped the hunting jacket tightly about me, and walked swiftly away. The heat of the bread burned into my skin, but I clutched it tighter, clinging to life.

By the time I reached home, the loaves had cooled somewhat, but the insides were still warm. When I dropped them on the table, Prim's hands reached to tear off a chunk, but I made her sit, forced my mother to join us at the table, and poured warm tea. I scraped off the black stuff and sliced the bread. We ate an entire loaf, slice by slice. It was good hearty bread, filled with raisins and nuts.

I put my clothes to dry at the fire, crawled into bed, and fell into a dreamless sleep. It didn't occur to me until the next morning that the boy might have burned the bread on purpose. Might have dropped the loaves into the f lames, knowing it meant being punished, and then delivered them to me. But I dismissed this. It must have been an accident. Why would he have done it? He didn't even know me. Still, just throwing me the bread was an enormous kindness that would have surely resulted in a beating if discovered. I couldn't explain his actions.

We ate slices of bread for breakfast and headed to school. It was as if spring had come overnight. Warm sweet air. Fluffy clouds. At school, I passed the boy in the hall; his cheek had swelled up and his eye had blackened. He was with his friends and didn't acknowledge me in any way. But as I collected Prim and started for home that afternoon, I found him staring at me from across the school yard. Our eyes met for only a second, then he turned his head away. I dropped my gaze, embarrassed, and that's when I saw it. The first dandelion of the year. A bell went off in my head. I thought of the hours spent in the woods with my father and I knew how we were going to survive.

To this day, I can never shake the connection between this boy, Peeta Mellark, and the bread that gave me hope, and the dandelion that reminded me that I was not doomed. And more than once, I have turned in the school hallway and caught his eyes trained on me, only to quickly flit away. I feel like I owe him something, and I hate owing people. Maybe if I had thanked him at some point, I'd be feeling less conflicted now. I thought about it a couple of times, but the opportunity never seemed to present itself. And now it never will. Because we're going to be thrown into an arena to fight to the death. Exactly how am I supposed to work in a thank-you in there? Somehow it just won't seem sincere if I'm trying to slit his throat.

The mayor finishes the dreary Treaty of Treason and motions for Peeta and me to shake hands. His are as solid and warm as those loaves of bread. Peeta looks me right in the eye and gives my hand what I think is meant to be a reassuring squeeze. Maybe it's just a nervous spasm.

We turn back to face the crowd as the anthem of Panem plays.

_Oh, well_, I think. _There will be twenty-four of us. Odds are someone else will kill him before I do._

Of course, the odds have not been very dependable of late.


	3. Chapter 2 - Riding into the Capitol

The sleek, Capitol train was already producing billows of smoke as Effie Trinket, Haymitch, Peeta and I were escorted to the exceptionally clean platform. I felt unfit to be seen on the platform in my moderately-clean best clothes; hand-me-downs from my mother's lustrous Capitol years, before she settled for my father in a small mining district, District 12. It's a very feminine, powder blue shade dress, tailored to emphasise the owners bust. Luckily, I had inherited my mother's curvaceous figure.

Peeta was still wearing his reaping best as well; a white shirt and formal pants. His hair was slicked back, creating an image of elegance. His well-defined muscles were slightly visible through his fitted shirt, seeming to look like a Capitol citizen. I felt slightly inferior in comparison as he only just towered over me. However, for some reason unbeknownst to me, I felt adoration for this masculine, chiselled beauty stood before me.

We were all swiftly guided onto the train and into the grand lounge, bursting with expensive furnishings, furniture and valuable objects. There, we were left alone, with Peeta and I feeling unsure of what to do. Haymitch strode over to the couches and lay on it with his face buried into one of the many plush pillows.

Effie, however clasped her hands together and said, with too much happiness in her voice to be normal, "Hello, young tributes, and welcome to the Hunger Games. I hope you enjoy the Capitol finery and your allocated rooms. It will take approximately 12 hours to reach the Capitol so I suggest you get some sleep before we arrive. Now Peeta, your room is straight down the corridor, round the corner and then the door to the left. Katniss, your room is directly across from Peeta's, just on the left. If you need me, I shall be in the room, just off the main corridor, with my name on the door. There is clothing in your rooms already, to wear when you get off the train. Now, I'm off to bed and you both should, too. Off you two go!"

She shooed us off down the corridor and we reluctantly walked to our rooms in an awkward silence. The tension between Peeta and I was unbearable, I couldn't wait to reach my room. As I got to my door, Peeta grabbed my wrist, preventing me from opening my door.

"Can we hang out for a while before we go bed? I'm not really tired and I just thought, since we are both in the same situation, why not make the most of the time we have left."

I was a little shocked at his request but swiftly replied with, "Sure, let me just get changed into something suitable for bed and I'll knock on your door to let you know when I'm ready."

I quickly slid into my room and locked the door before he had a chance to reply. My mouth suddenly went dry and my palms started sweating. For the first time ever, there will be a boy in my bedroom. Before I could dwell on that fact, I walked over to the dresser and started looking though the drawers. They were full of panties, bra's, night dresses, pyjama tops and bottoms. I ended up wearing a clean pair of white, lacy panties, with a matching bra, and a pale pink, silky night dress.

I snook over to Peeta's room and knocked quietly on his door. I waited for him to answer the door for another few minutes before knocking again, a lot louder than before. There was still no answer so I turned to head back to my room. Just as I opened my door, Peeta opened his. I spun round to look at him with my mouth slightly ajar, ready to speak when I saw his appearance.

There was a towel hung low on his hips, his chest bare with water droplets running over his muscles. My mouth had run dry. I looked up at his face to see an amused smirk, his wet hair making him look more dishevelled than normal.

"See something you like?" he said with a humorous glint in his eyes. He leaned against the door frame, flexing his biceps in a teasing manner. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't aroused by him, but I didn't have it in me to say anything except widen my eyes at his question. I've never seen a guy anywhere close to half naked and so I just stood there in shock.

"I guess I should go get some clothes on, but compared to you, I'd be over dressed," he said after laughing at my flustered state. Blushing, I scurried off into my room and closed the door. For some reason, my heart was beating to fast to count and I could feel butterflies in my stomach. I didn't know how a boy could get me feeling such sensations, but all I knew was that I didn't want it to stop.

It took him approximately 5 minutes to get dried and dressed before entering my room. I was sprawled across the bed on my stomach, facing the door, awaiting his arrival. He was wearing a tight t shirt and long shorts, slightly shivering from crossing the chilly hallway. He sat down on the floor, directly in front of me with a guilty look in his eyes.

He looked deep in thought for a moment, then broke the silence by saying, "I'm sorry for the way I acted before." He seemed nervous and kept running his hands through his hair, "I don't know what came over me, I never normally act like that."

The sheepish look on his face made my heart melt at his apology. I just smiled at him, letting him know all was forgotten already.

"Who came to see you before we left district 12?" I asked him out of curiosity.

"My mother and father came, they think that district 12 might win this year," he says with sad, yet hopeful eyes. "Who came for you?"

"Prim and my mother came in first, wished me luck. Then the Mayors daughter came in and gave me a Mockingjay pin. It's beautiful, I've already pinned it on my outfit for tomorrow," I said, indicating to the wardrobe. "Gale was the last person to visit me. I had to make sure my family is well looked after, and that your family still gets some of the squirrels we'd catch."

He looked me in the eyes, with a genuine smile on his face, "Thank you, Katniss."

I rolled over on the bed so that I was looking at him upside down. I had never realised how beautiful his blue eyes looked before now. The butterflies in my stomach from earlier suddenly returned.

Unexpectedly, he asked, "Are you ticklish?"

"What?" I asked him back, confused by his random question. However, before I could do anything, he had managed to stand up, kneel on the bed and pin my arms above my head. I suddenly felt hot under his stare, his eyes were darker than usual. I rubbed my thighs together as the ache between them grew stronger, unbearable.

I looked into his eyes, feeling something so intense that there are no words to describe it. The previously cold room now felt suddenly hot as his lips became the most interesting thing in the world. I looked up, into his eyes, vaguely that the space between us was quickly becoming non-existent. My eyes fluttered closed as our lips touched for the first time, fitting together like pieces in a jigsaw puzzle.

He released my wrists and pulled me up to meet his lips once again. An endless spark was ignited and I could feel it burning throughout my veins, the need for more. My heart thumped erratically, my fingers snaking though his hair, finding something to latch onto. I pulled away from him, pushing him down onto his back. I then climbed on top, straddling him, joining our lips together yet again. His tongue slipped though my lips, battling with mine for domination.

I pulled my silky night dress over my head and threw it to the floor, leaving me in nothing but my underwear. Peeta's eyes roamed my body before looking into my eyes with concerned yet lust filled eyes.

"Are you sure?" He whispered. I simply nodded at his question, too aroused to form a sentence.

If I had known the consequences of my actions that night, I don't know if I would have changed it. Sometimes things happen to people and they're not equipped to deal with them. I certainly wasn't prepared for what was to follow.


	4. Chapter 3 - The Aftermath Of Last Night

I woke up the next morning at sunrise, feeling extremely content. I sat up, dangling my legs over the edge of the bed, stretching my lazy muscles. Suddenly, the events of the night before hit me like a ton of bricks. I whipped my head round to the other side of the bed, expecting a sleeping Peeta. However, all that was there were empty sheets as a reminder that he was here.

A wave of sadness and disappointment washed over me as I stood up and strode into the bathroom. Looking into the mirror above the sink, I stared at my reflection. As I analysed every part of my appearance, I noticed a deep red area on my left hip. He had marked me!

Speechless, I climbed into the shower, as naked as the night before. Tears poured down my cheeks as the water pounded against my skin. I scrubbed every inch of my skin that I could reach; his lack of explanation and presence made me feel dirty.

I continued scrubbing until the water ran cold. Feeling slightly satisfied with my freshly cleaned body, I put the dryer on high to completely dry myself. My hair fell in shiny, sleek curls down my back.

As I stared into the mirror again, I vowed to harden myself when it came to Peeta. He stole my innocence after blinding me with his words, before leaving me to wake up all alone, as though it never happened. The unfamiliar and painful ache between my legs was proof enough that it wasn't a dream.  
I strode out of the bathroom with my newfound confidence and changed into the outfit I had chosen the previous day; which consisted of a brown blazer, cream blouse, beige skinny chinos, and brown ankle boots. My hair remained down, which was a refreshing change from my usual bun hairstyle. Just as I was heading to the bedroom door, I passed a small desk-like table with an antique mirror sat on top. I had never seen this type of furniture before, so naturally curiosity took the better of me. I was surprised to find the drawers full of make-up as I explored it. Feeling daring, I used brown eye shadow, black liquid eyeliner and black mascara to create a dark, smoky eye effect that I had learnt from my mother. I chose a scarlet red lipstick to wear instead of a plain nude colour, in order to emphasise my point of being a powerful woman and not a vulnerable girl.  
After applying a small amount of foundation, I strode through the train to the main lounge, surprised to find three people occupying the stunning antique dinning table in the corner of the room. Haymitch seemed hung-over, Effie ate her breakfast enthusiastically, and the person that hurt me the most smiled at me. I was furious on the inside, but outside I appeared natural. This boy was digging the knife deeper into my gut than it already was, killing me slowly and painfully.  
"Good morning," I said with a forced smile on my face. "How is everyone today?"  
I stared pointedly at Peeta, awaiting his wonderfully pathetic excuse. Looking confused, Peeta replied with, "I'm fine, thank you. I couldn't seem to get much sleep last night though, how about you Katniss?"  
"Fine, thanks, I wish I was still at home, with someone else as tribute, though," I replied, trying to appear as nonchalant as I possible could at that moment in time. Needless to say, I was cursing him in my mind, for acting like nothing happened.  
After only eating one of my four pancakes, I walked out of the room, shoving my plate forward on the table beforehand, perhaps too harshly. I stormed back to my bedroom feeling sick with disgust at Peeta's behaviour. How he could act oblivious was beyond me, but I know that I won't allow myself to fall for him again.  
Somebody must have followed me because as I sat down on my bed, there was a faint tapping at the door. I opened the door to find my tormentor staring at me with worried eyes. I hardened my expression, trying to build a defence to his penetrating gaze.  
"What are you here for, Peeta?" I asked, sounding as hostile as I could without showing him how upset I truly was.  
"I came to see if you were okay, what's wrong?" He asked me.  
"You are unbelievable! How can you stand there and act oblivious to last night's event?" I yelled in reply, too furious to even remember my vow. "I woke up to an empty bed with no explanation as to why you weren't there, and then you go and ask me a question like that? Are you serious?"  
Peeta looked as though I had slapped him across the face. The funny part was that I wasn't feeling nearly as satisfied than if I had. His mouth began to open and close, making him look like a fish gasping for air. Unfortunately he was gasping for words; no where near close enough to suffocation.  
"Hurry up, I haven't got all day," I spat out harshly, heavy on the sarcasm.  
"I didn't think to leave you a note; I couldn't sleep so I got dressed again in my own bedroom and went for a walk. I ended up staring out of the window in the lounge and before I knew it, the sun had risen. I was going to come back but Effie came into the lounge; it would have been odd if I had gone back to my bedroom without having eaten breakfast. I am terribly sorry for making you feel used, I never intended on that," he said as he stared into my eyes with regret written all over his features. I didn't know how to reply to his little speech; I was completely speechless.

I turned my back to him and closed my eyes in order to clear my mind a little; I needed to process everything he was telling me. I could feel Peeta press his lips onto my neck lightly, leaving a small kiss. Giving into my heart, I softly spoke, 'So now that you've got me, what are you going to do with me?"

He turned me to face him and, looking into my eyes, he said, 'Put you somewhere you can't get hurt."

I wish I could have frozen that moment, right then, in that very second, and lived in it forever. Unfortunately, the fire had already caught on; all I needed to remember was that hope is the only thing stronger than fear.


End file.
